Pryor documentary faulted for omissions

Thursday

May 30, 2013 at 12:01 AMMay 30, 2013 at 12:53 PM

What becomes obvious, after a few questions, is that Jennifer Lee Pryor isn't about to give the interview expected. As the wife of comic Richard Pryor who gave order to his life as he was struggling with multiple sclerosis in 1994, she guides his estate. She also serves as a producer behind a crackling documentary about his life and career to be shown Friday on Showtime.

What becomes obvious, after a few questions, is that Jennifer Lee Pryor isn’t about to give the interview expected.

As the wife of comic Richard Pryor who gave order to his life as he was struggling with multiple sclerosis in 1994, she guides his estate.

She also serves as a producer behind a crackling documentary about his life and career to be shown Friday on Showtime.

In that capacity, her job might be to say nice things about Omit the Logic.

But she doesn’t hide her disappointment with aspects of the film.It gives short shrift to important episodes in the comedian’s life, said Pryor, blaming director Marina Zenovich.

“I think that it failed in revealing what really was going on with Richard,” said Pryor, who added that she hopes to insert additional material in a DVD release. “I loved Richard madly; I married him twice. And one of the things I learned from Richard was that I had my own sense of truth and my own moral compass, and I had to follow it no matter what.”

Zenovich, who directed the Emmy-winning documentary Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired, said she worked hard to squeeze the high points of Richard Pryor’s controversial life and career into a 90-minute film — well aware that legions of fans, friends and family members were watching closely.

“You’re not being literal; you’re making more of a poetic truth,” she said. “When we went to the .?.?. (Tribeca Film Festival), one of the first things Jennifer said was there was going to be a sequel. I wish she would have told me that (during production); I would have made the film differently.”

As it stands, Omit the Logic is compelling, if brief. Richard Pryor was the first comedian to find mainstream success — taking explicit, black-centered comedy to the masses through wildly popular stand-up comedy albums, concert films and movie roles.

He first tried succeeding as a button-down Bill Cosby clone in the 1960s, only to discover that his authentic voice lay in channeling the profane, profound characters from his life. His success would inspire comics such as Tracy Morgan, Eddie Murphy and Wanda Sykes.

Filled with interviews of stars such as Robin Williams (who worked on Pryor’s ill-fated NBC sketch show), Lily Tomlin, Whoopi Goldberg and Mike Epps, the film hopscotches between personal tribulations and career milestones.

Richard Pryor, the son of a prostitute and a pimp, was born in Peoria, Ill. He was raised in a brothel operated by his grandmother — which led to stand-up routines humanizing pimps, winos and junkies.

Few reviewers, Zenovich said, have asked about one irony: that the story of Pryor, who once founded a production company to support black filmmakers, is told by two white women.

“I’m sure some people wondered why they hired me,” the director said with a chuckle.Several key figures don’t appear in the film — including Cosby, Murphy, former fiancee Pam Grier and the comic’s six children. “I think Pam was too hurt by Richard,” Jennifer Lee Pryor said. “Others, I know there was some bitterness.”

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.